Capital markets

Mobile payments got an early start in parts of Africa more than a decade ago, but the continent's overall banking infrastructure lags far behind, creating a void for companies like AZA and WorldRemit to fill.

Starling Bank Ltd. is weighing plans for a fresh funding round that could value the U.K. challenger at around 2.5 billion pounds ($3.4 billion), according to people familiar with the matter.

Taavet Hinrikus turned his startup into the one of the world’s biggest digital-payment firms, giving returns of about 35,000% to early investors including Peter Thiel’s Valar Ventures.

The U.K. financial technology startup GoCardless raised $312 million in new funding to speed up its expansion in open banking across products and geogrophies.

Esusu, a financial technology company that aims to help bridge the racial wealth gap by reporting rent payments to credit agencies, has become one of only a few Black-owned startups to reach a valuation of $1 billion after closing a Series B round led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2.

The French bank and New York asset management firm will buy and hold inventory to meet clients’ future needs and track materials on a new software platform.

Home valuation professionals have had mixed feelings about automation out of concern that some forms could result in less accurate assessments.

The Rhode Island bank estimated that its revised overdraft practices will cost $40 million each year, but it noted that complaints to call centers are down 40% since the policy change.

Valuations for payment technology companies skyrocketed over the past year, pushed by a wave of public listings and record venture capital investments. Some potential acquirers are waiting for prices to cool.

Mizuho Financial Group, the large Japanese bank, has agreed to buy U.S.-based Capstone Partners to expand in the business of helping private equity firms raise funds.

The government-sponsored enterprise also unveiled two new tranche slices for investors to purchase.

Average per-loan charges last year were little changed despite the addition of a new temporary fee for refinancing. Those for loan-to-value ratios above 80%, home-purchase financing and adjustable-rate mortgages only rose slightly.

The Alabama bank is buying Clearsight Advisors to add to its booming capital markets division.

The funding is tied for the second-largest crypto- or blockchain-related venture capital deal of the year with FTX Trading’s $1 billion round in July, after Robinhood Markets' $3.4 billion raise in January, according to PitchBook data.

Figure Technologies, the startup co-founded by Mike Cagney, created a platform to help private companies raise and trade equity using its blockchain technology.

Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce Innovation Banking hired Ryan Enriquez from JPMorgan Chase as executive director, part of an expansion of the unit’s New York office.

The mortgage giant’s net worth of $42 billion at the end of the quarter was more than double what it was a year earlier. CEO Hugh Frater said that financial strength puts the company on better footing to support affordable housing goals outlined by the Federal Housing Finance Agency.

The combined refinance and purchase total was nearly double the average quarterly volume logged before the pandemic, the company said in its third-quarter earnings call.

These venture capital firms are investing in young companies that could help small financial institutions meet their growing technology needs.

Maxwell, a startup that operates an online platform catering to mortgage loan officers and smaller lenders, raised $28.5 million in equity funding from investors led by the venture firm Fin VC and Wells Fargo Strategic Capital.